


Would Not Recommend

by Dandy



Category: Free!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - College/University, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-16
Updated: 2015-03-16
Packaged: 2018-03-18 03:21:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,025
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3554150
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dandy/pseuds/Dandy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>He reached a point where the evil magistrate, who had been capable of very powerful magic, was stopped from casting a spell by the force of the heroine’s feelings of love for the boy she presumably loved, when he actually sat the book down, rubbed his temple, and muttered aloud, “Absolutely ridiculous!”</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>"What part did you get to?"</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>Rei almost dropped the cup he had just lifted. Blushing over being heard, he looked around for the source of the comment, and finally noticed a young man just about his age sitting at the table to his right, facing him. He had long red hair swept back into a ponytail, a textbook, notebook, and a steaming mug of something topped with whip cream sitting in front of him, and he was wearing a smirk directed at Rei. He nodded at the book he had just set down.</i>
</p>
<p>Two strangers in a coffee shop strike up a conversation over a terrible book and find more in each other than similar literary tastes.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Would Not Recommend

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the tumblr prompt:
> 
> "You saw me reading the same book you did and we got into a heated discussion on how much it sucks" AU.

Rei liked this cafe for its quiet, laid back atmosphere. The folksy music that played filled the silence and covered up the clink of cups and the fall of footsteps without being distracting, the staff was courteous and didn’t bother guests who wanted to stay for hours working or reading, and it smelled of warm, fresh baked goods and good coffee, better than the kind found in chain stores.

"Sooo, it’s a cafe for hipsters," Nagisa had teased the first time Rei brought it up, and Rei had huffed and blustered and decided not to bring Nagisa along with him.

So the cafe was just his spot, and that was alright. Sometimes he liked being alone, with his thoughts and his schoolwork and sometimes a really good book.

Which this… was not.

It had been recommended to him by an acquaintance from one of his engineering classes. He had praised it as a really good read, was hooked from the beginning and couldn’t put it down, a real page turner. But Rei was not having the same experience. The plot was riddled with holes, the characters were flat and not, in Rei’s opinion, particularly likable, and it contained many unnecessary paragraphs about trivial facts. Really, if Rei cared what anyone was wearing, he would watch a movie or read a comic book.

He reached a point where the evil magistrate, who had been capable of very powerful magic, was stopped from casting a spell by the force of the heroine’s feelings for the boy she presumably loved, when he actually sat the book down, rubbed his temple, and muttered aloud, “Absolutely ridiculous!”

"What part did you get to?"

Rei almost dropped the cup he had just lifted. Blushing over being heard, he looked around for the source of the comment, and finally noticed a young man just about his age sitting at the table to his right, facing him. He had long red hair swept back into a ponytail, a textbook, notebook, and a steaming mug of something topped with whip cream sitting in front of him, and he was wearing a smirk directed at Rei. He nodded at the book he had just set down.

"Was it the part where they actually had the magic amulet the whole time, even though it never reacted to their search spells, or the part where that one guy is secretly an elf?"

Rei adjusted his glasses, giving himself a moment to get over his embarrassment. When he lowered his hand again, he smiled wryly back. “Actually, the heroine just stopped the magistrate with the power of her true love.”

"Oh, that. It didn’t make any sense, especially since she had no reason to even be in love with that toolbag."

"I agree, the love story element has seemed very forced. They’d barely met before they decided they were in love, and they’ve only had one or two actual conversations since."

The other boy nodded his head with conviction. “Right, right. They don’t have any chemistry.” He sighed in exasperation. “No one knows how to write a good romance anymore. I mean, where is the nuance?”

Rei blinked, and then couldn’t hold back a chuckle. The other man immediately went on the defensive, making a face that was almost a pout. “What?”

"I’m sorry." Rei schooled his features back into a neutral expression. "You just don’t look like the type to have so many opinions about romances."

The other boy got a light blush on his cheeks and looked away from Rei, snapping, “I’m just repeating what my sister told me!” which almost made Rei laugh again. He got over his embarrassment quickly, though, looking back. “Even if the romance was great, the book is still full of plot holes. You’re really going to tell me that they managed to cross dozens of miles in one day on foot? After stopping to have a massive battle that took several hours?”

"I did the math," said Rei before he could stop himself, "and it should have taken them at least three days, all those stops included, and allowing for a few hours of sleep each night."

"See, that’s what I’m saying." Red eyes shining, the boy got up and grabbed his drink, moving to sit at the chair across from Rei at his table. "No way they could have gotten there so quickly. And somehow without being tracked by the evil magistrate? Even though he was so conveniently able to find them later."

"I believe the implication was that he let them reach the dwarf kingdom without issue just to toy with them."

"Oh right. The Bond villain effect." The man rolled his eyes in exaggeration. "Because that’s such a smart plan."

"I agree. All of that would have been fixed if he had sent someone after him, and they had dispatched them. And then the author could have shown off the knight’s supposed fighting skills."

"A fight would have made that trek a lot more interesting than the main guy’s angst about if that girl was actually in love with the thief guy. Which is another thing that gets me, you know, you can have interesting character growth over stuff that isn’t over who they’re going to bang at the end of the book. The author never mentions how he feels about getting kicked out of the palace guard again! And what about her, isn’t she letting her family down by not going into religious servitude? Why do they only think about each other?"

"I don’t know. And I would have liked more exploration into the world and how it works. The book has an interesting idea with the fusion of magic and technology, but there’s so much left unexplained. How are those who can use magic treated in this world? What about those who invent?" He shook his head. "So many story threads that could have been pursued, carelessly cast aside for this ramshackle plot."

"You’re telling me. None of the characters grow and change. Might as well be reading about a brick wall."

"They don’t have much personality, either."

The other man opened his mouth to respond, then seemed to realize he was leaning across the table toward Rei as his tone grew more and more emphatic. Rei hadn’t realized he was doing the same, and as it dawned on both of them that they were only a few inches apart, he sat back in his chair, reaching up to adjust his glasses again. The other boy leaned back too, suddenly looking sheepish.

A moment of silence was broken by the redhead, who said, “Sorry about inviting myself to your table, by the way. Everyone I know loves this book, so I was pretty excited to find someone else who hates it.”

"I understand." Rei looked at the offending book, mostly so he didn’t have to look at his companion directly. "I’ve never stopped reading a book partway through and I’m not going to start now, but I don’t have high hopes for the ending."

"Trust me, there’s no reason to." The other man got his carefree smile back, suddenly extending a hand. "I’m Matsuoka Rin, by the way."

Rei blinked at him, then lifted his own hand to shake. “Ryugazaki Rei.”

"Nice to meet you, Rei," said Rin. His hand was warm around Rei’s, and gave a little squeeze before letting go. "Do you come here a lot?"

"Yes." Rei smiled. "I like it. It’s got the kind of atmosphere you don’t find in the city much these days."

"Yeah." Rin glanced around. "I hadn’t been in here until last week. I was pretty excited to find it." He shrugged. "It’s kind of hipster, but I like it."

"It’s not hipster," Rei defended automatically, which made Rin laugh. It was good-natured, not mocking, and Rei couldn’t be mad at it, even if it was directed at him.

"Sorry. Like I said, I like it. There’s some cool people here," Rin said, smiling at Rei for emphasis, and Rei had to look away again. "Do you go to school around here?"

"Yes." Rin’s eyes lit up when Rei told him the name of the school.

"No kidding? That’s where I go, too. I wonder why we’ve never seen each other."

"Well, it’s a large campus, with over ten thousand students. Is it really so unlikely?"

"I guess that’s true. What are you studying?"

"Mechanical engineering."

"I guessed you were the smart guy type."

"How about you?"

"Criminal justice. I want to be a detective." Rin grimaced. "Not just because it sounds cool," he added, with the tone of someone who’d said all this before, "but I want to help people, you know?"

Rei nodded earnestly. “I think that’s a wonderful aspiration, Matsuoka-san,” which made Rin smile.

"Hey, just call me Rin, alright?"

"If… that’s what you want, Rin-san," he complied, hesitant, and Rin’s smile widened, letting the honorific stand.

They chatted easily about books, classes, and their life ambitions for awhile longer, sitting at the small table. Rei had never talked so openly about his passion for engineering with anyone but his best friend Nagisa and his teachers before, but Rei found that the words flowed easily with Rin. He might chuckle when Rei talked about how he loved how logical physics and mechanics were, how there was a type of beauty in that, but never in a mocking way. It was almost fondness, an interest in what Rei found so appealing about it. And in return, Rin talked about being a detective - Rei learned that his father had been one, and he aspired to be like him. Despite his earlier protest that he didn’t want to be a detective “to look cool,” Rei could tell he had some romanticized ideas about the profession. Remembering their earlier conversation, Rei guessed Rin was a romantic at heart. It fit him, with his fiery red hair and passion to match.

They were talking about freshman lit, and about how Rin had the same professor Rei now had and how he was a complete hack, when Rei’s phone rang. Glancing down at the number, he grimaced and got up.

"I’m very sorry to cut our conversation short, Rin-san, but my roommate just got out of work and I was supposed to be there to pick him up."

"Oh. No problem." Rin glanced at his watch, and his eyes widened. "Geez, has it really been two hours? Sorry for keeping you so long."

"No, no!" Rei said, almost too quickly. He regained his composure while putting his things back into his bag. "I quite enjoyed the company. It really was good meeting you, Rin-san."

"Yeah, it was good meeting you too, Rei."

They were silent a moment, Rei not yet moving away from the table. Something was hanging in the air, heavy and decisive.

Finally, Rei took one step away, and Rin said, “Hey, Rei, can I see your phone for a second?”

Before Rei could answer, Rin had snatched it out of his hands, ignoring Rei’s indignant squawk. He thumbed something in quickly, then thrust the phone back at Rei, blushing just slightly. Rei glanced down at the screen as he took it, and saw a new contact had been added.

"Just, you know. In case you ever want to talk about shitty books again. Or good books. Or… anything, really."

Rei stared at the number another minute, then smiled up at Rin. “I… okay.”

"Okay," Rin echoed. They were still a moment longer, then Rei’s phone started ringing again, making them both jump.

"He’s never going to let me hear the end of it if I don’t go now," said Rei apologetically. "But I’ll be in touch, Rin-san."

"Sure. I’ll see you, Rei."

"I’ll see you," Rei replied, before leaving the cafe.

As he hurried to meet Nagisa, he couldn’t help but look at the number in his phone every now and then, smiling at the name on the screen. Matsuoka Rin. What an interesting man.

Nagisa was no doubt going to tease him about it when he found out, but some things, Rei supposed, were worth it.


End file.
